Dictionaries › English

pet

Pronunciation: /pɛt/

The English word “pet” has 16 meanings listed here.

noun

  1. An animal kept as a companion or otherwise for pleasure, rather than for some practical benefit or use.
  2. Something kept as a companion, including inanimate objects.
  3. One who is excessively loyal to a superior and receives preferential treatment.
  4. Any person or animal especially cherished and indulged; a darling.
  5. A fit of petulance, a sulk, arising from the impression that one has been offended or slighted.
  6. A term of endearment usually applied to women and children.

verb

  1. To stroke or fondle (an animal).
  2. To stroke or fondle (another person) amorously.
  3. To keep or treat (an animal) as a pet.
  4. To treat (someone) as a pet; to fondle; to indulge.
  5. To be a pet.
  6. To be peevish; to sulk.
  7. To be petulant or upset; to have a problem with.

adjective

  1. Favourite; cherished; the focus of one's (usually positive) attention.
  2. Kept or treated as a pet.
  3. Good; ideal.

Etymology

Originally northern dialectal, from Scots pet (“an animal that has been tamed and is kept as a pet; a darling or favourite; a petted or spoiled child”), probably from Scottish Gaelic peata (“pet, tamed animal, spoiled child”), from Middle Irish petta, peta (“pet, lap-dog”), of uncertain origin, possibly from a pre-Indo-European substrate. Compare also peat (“pet, darling, woman”), which is likely…

Keep exploring: in the interactive dictionary every word of a definition is a link. Open “pet” there

More English words

About this dictionary

The English dictionary on Glottosphere has 650,529 entries with a page. Browse the English dictionary.

Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.